Wyoming coal contains less sulfur than coal from the Midwest or Appalachia. But companies didn't care until federal regulations forced them to care.
The City of Laramie butts up against the aquifer that provides the town's drinking water. (image via Albany County Clean Water Advocates)

Local Wyoming elections have climate impacts

Climate change is a global problem, but many of the decisions and actions to help fight it are local. As Wyoming voters head to the polls this fall, keep in mind that city, county, and state officials impact our climate resilience.
The Legislature's tax giveaway won't help Wyoming coal workers—but it will put money in CEOs' pockets.

Wyo. Legislature finally (sort of) admits that the coal industry is dying

Unfortunately, state lawmakers’ responses to the industry’s decline won’t save jobs or help coal communities. They will, however, lead to less funding for public schools and higher energy costs for Wyoming residents.
Wyoming lost 6,000 jobs in the mining sector last year.

Minerals committee hijacks bill to help Wyoming transition from fossil fuels

The proposal would have created an independent task force to explore how Wyoming workers and communities can persevere through the global transition away from fossil fuels. Instead, the Legislature’s House Minerals Committee—which works hand-in-hand with industry—amended the bill to put the “transition” task force under its own control.
Despite the Legislature's best efforts, coal has consistently declined.

The Legislature’s plan to keep Wyoming burning coal (whether we like it or not)

The Legislature has been working hard—and failing—since 2019 to prop up Wyoming’s coal industry. This year, proposals to support carbon capture, ban renewable energy, sue states that decrease coal use, and force coal-fired plants to stay open are all on the table.
The wind industry is an increasingly important source of county tax revenue in Wyoming.

Wyoming Legislature continues its quest to punish renewable energy

Want to hurt businesses? Create an environment of uncertainty. That’s the plan for Wyoming lawmakers intent on kneecapping our wind and solar industries.
Bonnie and Nancy Bath plan to site wind turbines from the Rail Tie Project on their family ranch. They hope to make enough income to keep from having to sell the land for subdivision.

Clean power supporters convince Wyoming land board to approve wind energy lease

Energy workers, ranchers, and young people united to support a proposed Albany County wind farm, which wealthy local homeowners oppose. The state land board’s lease approval moves the project one step forward. But obstacles remain.
Nearby landowners have purchased several billboards as part of their campaign to stop the Rail Tie wind project.

NIMBY landowner campaign inflames anti-renewables attitudes to block Wyoming wind development

A proposed wind farm would bring tens of millions of dollars in revenue for Albany County and Wyoming schools, along with good jobs. But hilltop landowners worried about their backyard views have launched a campaign to stop it, trafficking in Wyomingites’ anxieties about the global transition to carbon-free energy.
Gordon has taken the throne of the Coal Kingdom.

Gov. Mark “King Coal” Gordon to receive $1 million annual Wyoming coal marketing budget

The program won’t be enough to impact global markets, but it will help distract state residents from the fact that there is no plan to transition Wyoming away from dependence on a dying industry.
Without decisive action from state leadership, staying strong is about all folks in coal-dependent places like Gillette can hope to do.

Wyoming’s woeful response to coal’s collapse

As the coal industry falters, costing Wyoming hundreds of millions of dollars per year in lost revenues, state leaders struggle to act.
Wyoming coal contains less sulfur than coal from the Midwest or Appalachia. But companies didn't care until federal regulations forced them to care.

Federal regulations created Wyoming's coal industry

Wyoming politicians whine about the federal “War On Coal.” But no one was buying the Powder River Basin’s low-sulfur product until the Clean Air Act made it more affordable than its competitors.